Retired Kenyan, Colonel Seth Sheva, has delivered a scathing assessment of Russia’s Africa Corps, declaring that the much-feared mercenaries are failing to secure the African countries that pay them despite their reputation for extreme violence.

In a statement, Sheva argued that “for all their swagger, intimidating appearance and reputation for extreme violence, the Africa Corps have not been noticeably effective in securing the regions they have been paid to secure.”

The Africa Corps evolved in 2023 from the infamous Wagner Group, which operated under the personal control of Yevgeny Prigozhin until his death in a mysterious plane crash shortly after a short-lived rebellion against the Kremlin.

Sheva noted that the group now sits directly under the Russian Defence Ministry, giving it “a veneer of officialdom” that has allowed operations to continue unabated.

While the Central African Republic remains the group’s longest running engagement since 2018, Sheva said that internal rivalries are surfacing between original Wagner fighters and newer Africa Corps recruits.

He said: “According to the Robert Lansing Institute, former Wagner members want to preserve their independence and close ties to President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, while the newer force tries to impose unpopular formal structures.